Using FCP on a MAC PowerPC G5

S

srmarx

Member
I'm using FCP 6 on a MAC G5. I have 6 gigs of RAM and at least 50 gigs free on the internal hard drive.
I'm capturing files to an external RAID system communicating via SCSI cables to a PCI board at the back of the tower.
The problem is: it's slow and can't display much on playback--lots of RED bars on the timeline--even with quality set to low and quarter frame rates. We're talkin' simple stuff here--two video layers--DVC50 compressed video on one and a simple matte on the other. For a one minute segment, FCP won't display it and says it'll take about 20 minutes to render! YiKES.

I'm wondering:
1) if there are RAID settings to check
2) if using a Firewire 800 external drive would help.
3) what else can I do?
 
RED footage? On a G5? GOOD LUCK! Sorry, but the G5 is SEVERELY underpowered for RED. You need an Intel Mac for that...MacPro. G5's are limited in what they can do with current camera tech.
 
Shane Ross said:
RED footage? On a G5?
Click to expand...

Nope. Read the post again... red bars (unrendered footage), even with DVCPRO 50.

To the OP: I'd say it's the processor, but you didn't give a speed for your G5, and DVCPRO 50 shouldn't be causing that.
 
Red BARS! Man, I thought it was red FOOTAGE. Sheesh.

If you have DVCPRO 50 on the timeline, and you have render bars...that's clue #1 that something is wrong. Sequence settings not matching the clip settings.

#28 Having to render every clip in the timeline


Shane's Stock Answer #28: When I put a clip in the timline, I have to render it before it will play. Why?


Your clip settings MUST match your timeline settings. If you have DV/NTSC material, you need a DV/NTSC timeline. The frame rate, audio rate and dimensions (4:3, 16:9) all need to match exactly. In Final Cut Pro 6, this is easy, because when you drop a clip into the timeline, it asks if you want to set up the timeline to match the settings of the first clip you drag into it. Click YES and you are ready to go.


However, in FCP 5.1 and earlier, it is a bit trickier.


The most important thing you need to do is properly set up your project from the start, and the best way to do this is to choose a setting from the Easy Setups, located under the Final Cut Pro menu.


Once you do this, you’ll need to create a new sequence. This is because the sequence that is already in your new project is setup for the typical default setting of DV/NTSC, or for the settings of your last project, which might not match what you are currently working with. So delete SEQUENCE 1 and create a new sequence:


This new sequence will contain the settings you chose in the Easy Setup menu, and should match the format you captured.
 
One other thought: I edited in FCP on a 1.8GHz iMac G5 for a while, and even in the regular DV NTSC codec, adding a matte on a second layer caused a need to render out before playing. There are things that your G5 can do in real time, and things that it cannot. Cross-dissolves and fades, yes. Compositing, probably not.
 
Does your matte use any feathering / edge softness? I find that's a big slowdown… if so, turn that off while editing then teenage it for final render…
 
Can't match sequence settings with the clip. It's a mixed-format sequence. The sequence is set to HDV (1440:1080). The clip in question is DV that's being pillar-barred.
===steve
 
srmarx said:
Can't match sequence settings with the clip. It's a mixed-format sequence. The sequence is set to HDV (1440:1080). The clip in question is DV that's being pillar-barred.
===steve
Click to expand...

Well, there's your problem.

Mixing codecs is never a good idea. Just convert everything to the same codec before you import to your FCP project, to make sure that everything is matched.

HDV, by the way, is a terrible choice for editing. It's slow and clunky... and yes, most things will have to be rendered. If you're shooting in HDV, move everything to ProRes (ProRes LT should be just fine) to edit.
 
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